Denial Is Not A River In Egypt

Often, we tend to deny not the external reality, but our own feelings and emotions. Unfortunately, it is the society we live in, our culture, or our upbringing that unknowingly encourages denial. “Only girls cry” is a classic example of this. Boys who grow up hearing this often end up believing that crying is a sign of weakness. As adults, they end up strongly denying any feeling that comes close to tearfulness. Ditto for all the other negative feelings such as anger, depression and so forth. When we deny powerful feelings like anger and grief, unfortunately, they don’t go away. They get suppressed into our system, and keep affecting us, always finding ways and means to express themselves. That is why a seemingly calm person may suddenly end up having a huge temper outburst, and you are left wondering what happened.

Hence, it’s important to be on our guard against denial—in ourselves as well as our loved ones. Denial is likely in the following scenarios: Death of a loved one, Terminal illness in a loved one, Mental illness in a loved one, Alcoholism, Drug dependence, Infidelity. 

Any unexpected event that causes a shock to the system is fertile ground for denial to breed. Join Duchess and Jewels as they explore this crippling disease called DENIAL.